Piano accordion



Oct. 12, 1965 A. H. NILSEN 3,211,041

PIANO ACCORDION Filed April 22, 1963 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. 70

INVENTOR 4m: haw/er /1 85A BY (/M if WW ATTORNEY A. H. NILSEN PIANO ACCORDION Oct. 12, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 22, 1963 AV/lY ll INVENTOR 49AM fli/vw M4 szxv BY JAM/d; M

ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,211,041 PIANO ACCORDION Arne Henry Nilsen, Tonsberg, Norway (Norwegian Seamens Church, Sitanegatan 16, Gothenburg C, Sweden) Filed Apr. 22, 1963, Ser. No. 274,471 Claims priority, application Norway, Apr. 30, 1962, 144,199 1 Claim. (Cl. 84-376) The present invention relates to a method of and a device for tone-transposing in multitonal, air-operated musical instruments, which comprise a number of chambers substantially corresponding to the number of tones, each of which chambers is adapted through valve means to be brought into communication with a source that pro vides an air pressure higher or lower than the atmospheric pressure.

The object of the invention is to provide a device whereby, with a single clavier and a simple operation of a tone-transposing device one may transpose all of the key-corresponding normal tones, one or more full notes higher or lower.

This is, according to the invention, achieved in that the air paths to the reeds during transposing are altered in such manner that the reed to one side or the other of the reed corresponding to a particular valve is operated. In this manner may be achieved an increase of the versatility of an instrument having a conventional keyboard.

A practical embodiment for efiecting this method consists according to the invention in that said chambers are formed by openings in at least three stationary plates, between adjacent pairs of which is displaceably provided a plate having a corresponding number of apertures, in such manner that if the last mentioned plates are displaced said modification of the shapes of the chambers takes lace.

p In a preferred embodiment of the invention the three stationary plates are relatively thick and the apertures in the two outermost plates are in registry with each other, whereas the apertures of the median plate are displaced in the median plane between the outermost plates, and the apertures in the two displaceable, thin plates are narrower than the apertures in the stationary, thick plates.

For uncomplicated operation of the device the displaceable plates are operated simultaneously, e.g. each by an eccentric disc, attached toa shaft and cooperating with a guiding aperture in the plate.

An embodiment, by way of example, of the invention is given below with reference to the drawing.

FIGURE 1a is a perspective view of a piano accordion embodying the present invention, and FIGURE 1b is a transverse vertical section taken on the line 1b-1b of FIGURE 1a.

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view, partly in section, of a part of 'a device according to the invention.

FIGURES 3, 4 and diagrammatically show a portion of the device of FIGURE 1, where FIGURE 3 shows the normal air path to a reed-set whereas FIGURE 4 and FIGURE 5 respectively show the air path upon transposing of a full note downwards and a note upwards by pressing the same key.

The instrument comprises generally a treble side 20 having the usual keys 21, a bass side 22 and a bellows 23.

The standard four-voice reed carrier of the treble side of the piano accordion consists of a case or frame 24 of wood or other suitable material containing four reed boxes or chambered blocks 25, each block having a series of openings 26 and a second series of companion openings 27. The reeds 15, 16 and 17 are associated 3,211,041 Patented Oct. 12, 1965 with corresponding companion pairs of openings and the keys are connected to companion valves 14 of usual type and each of such valves controls the supply of air to one or more reeds. Between the valves and the reeds the air supply is controlled by a device according to the in vention which device is controlled by a rotatable knob 28.

The arrangement of the invention comprises three stationary, relatively thick plates 1, 2 and 3, between adjacent pairs of which are displaceably arranged two thin plates, 4 and 5 respectively, which are displaceable by means of two eccentric discs 6, 7 respectively, which are attached to a common operative shaft 8, and of which each cooperates with a control aperture in the plates 4 and 5 respectively. The apertures 9 and 10 in the plates 1 and 3 respectively, are of elongated shape and are in registry with each other. The apertures 11 provided in the plate 2 are laterally displaced to positions midway between two adjacent apertures 9 and 10 in the plates 1 and 3 respectively, but have otherwise the same shape, as is especially evident from FIGURE 2. The apertures 12 and 13 in the plates 4 and 5 are of identical shape and are in registry with each other in their normal or untransposed position, as in FIGURE 2. When a valve 14 is opened, during playing, the air path from the air source is applied to the reed-set 15. When transposing to a full note downwards by opening of the valve 14- and after displacement of the plate 5, the air path from the air source leads to the reed block 16, as shown in FIG- URE 4. When transposing to a full note higher by translation of the plate 4, opening of the valve 14 will communicate the air path from the air source to the reed block 17, as shown on FIGURE 5. In this manner the first transposition may modify a normal C-instrument to form a B-fiat-instrument, whereas the other transposition modifies the usual C-instrument to become a D-instrument. In this manner the tone-area of the instrument may be increased without increasing of the size of the instrument or the keyboard thereof. In order to avoid keys becoming toneless upon transposition it is desirable that extra reeds be added at both ends of the tone array, and such extra reeds are, of course, not in operation when the instrument is used without transposition.

The embodiment shown by way of example is adapted for an instrument comprising two rows of valves, and the reed-sets of each of the two-reed blocks then must be arranged in accordance with the full tone scale system.

If the arrangement is expanded to contain six stationary plates and five thin, displaceable plates, there may be obtained mechanical transposing to five other tone types, over that which is played when a conventional piano keyboard is used.

I claim:

A piano accordion having a series of reeds adapted each to produce a different tone, means defining a series of valves one individual to each reed, means defining a series of air passages each interconnecting a said valve and an associated said reed, and transposing means for simultaneously altering the path of a plurality of said air passages, said defining means comprising at least three stationary plates and said transposing means comprising a plate slidably disposed between each adjacent pair of said stationary plates, the openings of the outermost of said at least three plates being in registry with each other, the openings of the middle of said three plates being displaced from the openings of said outermost plates in the plane of said middle plate, the openings in said slidable plates having an extent in the direction of sliding movement of said sliding plates which is substantially less than the extent of the openings in said stationary plates in said direction, and said plates and openings being disposed relative to each other such that each of said slidable plates is movable between positions in which each opening in a slidable plate is in registry with a single opening of one of its adjacent said stationary plates and alternately in registry with two adjacent openings of the other of its said adjacent stationary plates, so that when the openings in said slidable plates'are in registry with each other and communicate between the openings of the adjacent stationary plates, said air passages interconnect said valves with said associated reeds, and when the openings in said slidable plates are out of registry with each other and communicate between the openings of the adjacent stationary plates, the air passages interconnect the valves and the reeds on one side of said associated reeds.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,148,206 2/39 Kostka 84--376 2,208,384 7/40 Morrison. 2,432,184 12/47 Walt 84-376 2,527,912 10/50 Bugari 84376 2,700,913 2/55 Pancotti 84376 FOREIGN PATENTS 216,318 7/61 Austria.

LEYLAND M. MARTIN, Primary Examiner.

LEO SMILOW, Examiner. 

